The Importance of Core Values

Should a small BioTech or MedTech startup spend precious time and resources developing a corporate mission and core values? The answer is 100%, absolutely, unequivocally, YES.

A clearly stated mission conveys what your company aims to achieve, differentiates you in the market, and holds leadership accountable. Core values establish a cultural framework that tells employees and clients exactly what to expect when working with you.

I'll admit — early in my career, I thought mission and values were corporate window dressing with little to no bearing on my day-to-day life. What I didn't understand was that our mission and values drove our corporate priorities, and those priorities ensured I had every resource I needed to do my job well. In short, the mission and values created the environment that made the same possible.

It doesn’t have to be hard.

For the corporate mission, simply answer the question “Why does our company exist beyond making money?” Archimedic’s mission is to “Improve Patient Lives by Empowering our Clients with Comprehensive MedTech Services that deliver Impactful, Market-Ready Products.”

For core values, answer the question “How do we behave when no one is watching?” In Archimedic’s case, we aspire to be Grateful, Humble, Authentic, Joyful, Courageous, Client-focused, Creative, Collaborative, Growth-minded, and Accountable.

The most important thing is that both the mission and values need to be genuine, not performative. A hollow mission and word-salad set of core values are easily noticed by both employees and clients and quickly lead to cynicism. A genuine mission and set of core values should are commonly referenced by leadership and clearly used in decision making.

A clear corporate mission gives your company direction.  Core values give it character. Both are foundational building blocks that will result in a stronger company moving forward.

M. Alexander Shaw
CEO